Habiki and Naki stood a few meters apart in preparation for the first lesson
Compared to when he was being tutored by Zickler, Naki was more serious than excited this time
"Alright, Naki, let us begin the first lesson," Habiki said
Naki nodded and stood ready.
"This lesson shall be your most important lesson, for after this, there shall be no more lessons per se, only questions."
"Huh? What do you mean?" he asked, surprised.
"The main reason why your power goes out of control is not due to your inability to balance the three key aspects of our magic..."
"Rather, it is simply because you have not met the conditions necessary to wield the devil's power," she answered.
Naki frowned; he did not appreciate the term conditions
"Conditions? What do you mean, conditions?" he asked
Habiki chuckled and responded.
"To use the devil's power, you must offer something in return, Naki," she replied as if this was supposed to be basic knowledge.
"Something he likes to refer to as a vice."
"A vice?"
"Yes. Be it from yourself or someone else. But it must be precious, it must be tied to a will. Not just any evil will do."
Naki stared at his right hand for a while, picturing the sigil shimmering
"If that is the case, how have I been able to utilize his magic throughout the years, albeit in an unstable state?"
"That is because you unconsciously made use of the Devil's Mercy system".
"Huh?" Naki didn't follow
Then, he saw Habiki pointing to his gloves, signaling for him to take them off.
"If you look at your gloves, you'd find 7 circles around the devil's sigil."
"Those circles indicate the devil's mercy, or in more appropriate terms, the debt you owe to the devil for using his power without offering a precious vice in return."
"Wait, so you mean to say these circles don't fill up in terms of time, but it's about the magic I've been expending, especially during my previous tutor sessions?"
"I'd like to say yes, but...it's both," she replied
"The devil does not appreciate his time being wasted, so even if you don't use magic while not offering any vices, you will pay for his time."
"And of course, when the circle fills up, he will claim your soul as recompense without fail," she concluded.
Naki grits his teeth in disappointment. "(Tsk, thought I found a potential loophole there.)" he thought
"Hm-hm, escaping a devil's contract is not that easy, I'm afraid. I'd advise for now you focus on what can keep you alive in the future." Habiki somehow figured that is what he was thinking
"I'll take my chances," he said
He wore the gloves once again
"So, anything I can do about these circles now that they're already filled up? 5 sub 7 is not a good number."
"Lucky for you, there is!" she said excitingly.
"By offering enough vices to repay that debt, you can recover the devil's mercy, which should allow you to act in the future without offering up a vice."
"You mean to say that as long as I have any of these circles free, I can exploit the system and use powerful magic without the strings attached?"
"Hence the devil's mercy system."
"Interesting..."
Naki said, already calculating the various possibilities he can conjure to outmaneuvre the devil's demands.
"But you must be careful. The devil's mercy system is highly unpredictable. What you may feel is a little deal could fill up to 5 of those circles. There's no guarantee that your next act won't fill up the remaining 2," Habiki warned
"Tsk, of course, he doesn't play fair, does he?"
"Lucille never plays fair," Habiki said and reached for her staff.
"But that is enough talk for now. Exploiting his mercy system will not be wise, especially if you don't know how the sigil works."
She equipped her staff, taking a stylish stance by leaving one foot forward and turning to the side, with the staff held behind her back.
"The best we can do at this moment in time is make use of it in an efficient manner."
"What do you mean?" Naki asked expectantly
"I mean, it's about time you cast your first magic with control."
"Witness how powerful you really are."
Habiki started concentrating as the earth was trembling around her
Dust was building up as rocks floated around her feet up to her knees due to the sheer magical energy she eluded
Naki was visibly shaken as he upped his defenses
"(tsk, her energy is quite something. So this is how she gets when serious)"
Naki thought and recalled when she refused to equip her staff in their duel.
"(Sure glad I didn't press on that fact now)"
Then Habiki spoke, "My apologies for the dramatics, but considering what others have suffered, I really can't spare any effort."
"What do you mean?"
"Withstanding Lucille's magic is no small feat. I will have to borrow some of my mistress's power, but it is necessary for your training."
Then, she stretched her hand forward.
"So remember, before casting, offer a vice and come at me with your best shot."
Habiki said as she stood ready, her bell swaying with a soft glow
Naki, staring intently at Habiki, thinking
"(Alright. Clearly she can handle herself just fine, so it's up to me to put her words into practice)"
Naki stared at his right hand as the Sigil shimmered, reacting to the presence in front of them.
"(Even the sigil reacts to the energy she's releasing...which means, there's a high chance it could cause my magic to go awry as usual)"
"I have a hint for you, Naki. Self-harm is also a vice," Habiki said and nodded at him, still maintaining her posture.
Naki looked at his sword and then closed his eyes
"Self harm, a vice behind a will. Very well"
"You are strong, Habiki, so you better not die from what I am about to do."
Naki said, and used his sword to slit his right palm, wounding it violently as the blood spread out.
But then, it suspended in mid-air as he concentrated, stretching his sword upwards.
"I must master this power, whatever the costs!"
His sword completely shattered and was replaced by an enormous dark crimson pillar of energy where there once was steel.
"I shall claim this life for myself, and anyone or anything that stands in my way, be it fate, be it gods or the devil himself!"
The crimson blade grew enormous and spread out like branches of a dead tree..
The sigil was feeding it so much power that it ripped apart the suppression gloves that were containing it.
"I SHALL CLAW THROUGH THEM ALL!"
He finally brought down the gigantic aura-like claw on Habiki
"Mistress Keifa!" she called out as sweat had built up on her face
A huge mass of golden light energy formed a gigantic mystical ritual bell above Keifa as she raised her staff
"DIVINE BELL OF SOLACE!"
She forcefully pinned her staff to the ground, bringing down the bell to enclose her as a light imagination of a spiritual woman's soul embraced the bell for extra protection.
With that, the gigantic crimson claw crashed the earth around her as a massive gust of dust filled the area.
"huh-huh-huh." Naki, weak on his knees, stared ahead, breathing heavily as his devil sigil shimmered softly.
"(Is she...)"
His eyes narrowed as he saw pieces of a torn cloak scattering in the wind
Then the dust died down, and he could see Habiki keeping herself from falling by leaning on her staff
Her cloak was completely torn, revealing just her magic academy uniform.
She had light scratches on her face and her arms and was visibly exhausted
"Huh huh, I said show me your best shot, not 'kill your mentor' Naki."
Naki smiled in response, "Well, if you can crack jokes, then I suppose you're alright."
"Alright...I guess. Can't say the same about your home though."
"Huh? What do you mea-"
Having ensured her safety, Naki could now look around.
He saw the result of his magic.
Magic that had just destroyed their entire home, leaving a crater in its wake.
The same can be said for the rest of the backyard, as only the area around Habiki was scarcely affected.
"What the...hell..."
Habiki pulled herself up and returned her staff to her back once again
"This is just a taste of the power you possess."
"What you can do when you offer the devil something in return. It becomes more than just an accident."
Habiki gestured at the area around him
"It becomes a phenomenon."
"No way..." Naki stared at his barren hands once again, the sigil glowing red.
The cut he made was still there, but the blood had been clotted
"But of course, it comes with limitations, as I'm sure you'll understand very soon," Habiki said with a smile.
"Limitations? what limita-"
Suddenly, his heart rate spiked painfully as he clutched his chest
"Urgh, what is this throbbing pain? aarghh!!"
He was prancing about painfully and fell to his knees
Habiki walked to his side gently as he was slowly losing consciousness, and his vision blurred
"Congratulations, Naki, you've finally mastered control," she said.
"Rest, Devil child. For when you awake, there will be much to discuss."
With that, Naki succumbed to the temptation of rest and lost consciousness.